Automobile-body.



A. KRAETZER.

AUTOMOBILE BODY.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 24, 1911.

1,046,201, Patented Dec. 3, 1912.

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tion is to provide ready means of ALBERT KRAETZER, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

AUTOMOBILE-BODY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec.'3, 1912.

Application filed January 24, 1911. Serial No. 604,348.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT KRAETZER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Automobile-Bodies, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the construction of the body of an automobile,and particularly to the arrangement of the doors therein.

The principal object of the presei ingress for the driver of the mach Afurther object of the inventi arrange a door beside the drive forming apart of the seat itself, shall harmonize with the general of the car andbe capable of swingi wardly without encountering any c ling levers thatmay be positioned on outside of the car.

-Tie invention further relates tures of construction and the con ofparts hereinafter described and In the drawings, Figure 1 is sineelevation of an automobile, equipped with a torpedo type of body, andshowing a door of the present invention in open position; Fig. 2 is anenlarged plan view of the drivers seat shown in Fig. 1, showing the doorclosed in full lines and open in dotted lines; and Fig. 8 is a sideelevation of an open type of automobile body, showing a door of thepresent invention.

The automobiles now in general use are designed with a double forwardseat, one section of which is adapted for he use of the driver of thecar. Automobiles built with a torpedo body are usually made with a blinddoor beside the drivers seat, and the mode of egress and ingress for theoperator is through a door on the side of the car opposite his seat. Inautomobiles having the open type of body, the open space at the side ofthe drivers seat is obstructed by the lovers controlling the gears,reverse, emergency brake, etc, and especially by the seatarms or ends,which renders it impracticable for the driver to en t-er or leave thecar on that side. Inasmuch as considerable annoyance and discern isoccasioned to both the driver and the person who sits beside himwhenever it is necessary for the operator to squeeze by the adjacentseat, to pass in or out of the car, the present form of automobile bodyin this respect is defective, and it is to eliminate such objectionablefeatures that my invention is designed.

The automobile illustrated in the drawings is intended to represent anystandard type of car; and the arrangement of the controls, etc, withrespect to the position of the driver, as indicated, is such as isordinarily used. In the drawings there is represented the body portion4: of a car, equipped with a forward seat 5, which, as shown in Fig. 2,is divided into sections 6 and 7 for the .driver and one passengerrespectively. Positioned directly in front of'the drivers seat is asteering wheel 8 with the usual controls thereon; and pivotally mountedbeside said seat, at the side of the car, are the levers 9 for actuatingsuch parts as the emergency brake, reverse, etc.

Exit from the. forward seats of the car is provided for by doors 10 and11, the former of which is on the passengers side and is of the usualdesign. The door 11, which is beside the drivers seat and forms thesubject matter of the present invention, is hinged as at 12 and latchedby a handle 13.

It is intended that the outer side of the operators seat shallconstitute a consider-- able portion of the door itself, so that whenthe outer side of said seat is moving with it, leaving on the outside,above the level of the seat, no barrier or obstruction. In order thatthe maximum space may be provided for the passage of the operatortherethrough; the door extends from the rear portion of his seat to the,point where the levers 9 are situated. In the open body type, shown inFig. 8, the hinges on said door are preferably positioned at the rearedge; but in the type of body shown in Fig. 1, the position of thehinges on the door may be either rearward or forward.

When the operator desires to enter the car, he will open the door to theposition indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 2. As

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be presented around the sides of the seat, as is usual.

Egress from the car is simple and reac y, the removing of the legsthrough the space 145 to the running board beingall that is necessary topermit the operator to lefive his seat. The advantages of such anarrangeln moments of emergency, no "time need be lost in leaving orentering the car. in an auto oil the usual type, it is generallyim1n'acticable, as Well as inconvenient, for the operator to leave hisseat quickly. This is because of the ob structing position of thesteering Wheel and the divid' g partititm between the seats 6 and '1'.it is always necessary for the driver to ide out from under the Wheel,his knees in a bent position, across the dividing ridge between theseats, and either lose time in straightening hii'nsolf to turn and passbefore the adjacent person, or else slide across his lap. To return tohis seat, the same movements must; be executed in the reverse order.Because of the obstructing levers {l on the drivefs side of the car, asWell as because oi? the obstruction otlered by the steering Wheel, andespecially by the side ot the seat, it Well nigh impossible to enter orleave the car on the drivefis side.

In constructing an automobile body according to the present invention,it 1mportant to note that the cusl'iioned side of the drivers seatitself "forms a considerable part oi? the door. By arranging the door inthis manner, so as to open up the, outer side of the drivers seat, amplespace is provided for entering or leaning the seat Without diminishingthe ize ol the seat or extending the car body. A seat so formed differsin. appearance from that ordinarily used only in the vertical divid linewhich marks oit' the cushions oi? the swinging side portion andthmcurved rear portion.

As shown in Fig. 3, in a car oi the open type oi": body, the door needonly extend dotvnwaijd to the level oi? the seat cushion to permit readyegress from the car, since there is already prtwided the necessary openspace 14- ;tor the'passage of the operator. Although only two types cit"car bodies are illustrated in the drawings the open and torpedotypes-tl1e adaption of the seatdoor of my invci'ition to any otherdesign of car, as, for instance, the coupe or limousine, is pelfteotlyapparei'it.

I claim:

'1, The combination with an automobile body of a fixed vehicle seatcomprising a seat portion and side arms, at least one of said side armsbeing swingingly mounted with respect:- to the entire seat portion, andconstituting a door for the automobile body, substantially described.

52. The combination with an automobile body of a fixed vehicle seatcomprising a seat portion and side arms, the said side arms norl'uallylying flush with the automobile body, at least one of said side armsbeing s'ivingingly mounted with respect to the entire seat portion, andconstituting a door for the automobile body, substantially as described.

3. The combination with an automobile body of a fixed drivers seatcomprising a seat: portion and side arms, and located to one side oi?said automobile body and in prox imity to the steering and drivingmechanism therein, the outer side arm of said seatv nor mally lyingflush with the autmnobilebody and being swingingly mounted with respectto the entire seat portion, and constituting a door for the automobilebody, and adapted when in open position to lcaiv a clear passageway atthe side of the seat for direct ingress and egress, substantially asdescribed.

4t. In a vehicle, the combination with a fixed seat 0t. a side doorhinged to the body of the vehicle and adapted when in closed position toclose the side of the vehicle adjacent the seat and to constitute a s dearm for the seat, and adapted when in open position to leave a clearpassageway at the side of the seat for direct ingress and egresstherefrom, substantially as described.

In an automobile having a steering device and controlling levers appliedat one side thereof, a drivers seat located immediately at the rear ofsaid steering device and levers and provided at the side which isadjacent to said levers with a side section that is movable while thebody of the scat remains stationary;and which, when closed forms theside extension of the seat back and which, when opened, permits a personto enter the side sidewise at. the rear of the said lever and steeringdevice.

ALBERT KRAETZER.

Witnesses WV/iminn Bannixo, EPHRAIM Bannrno.

